I recently loaded up a knapsack with some colored pencils and my nature journal and hiked to a local waterfall to sketch.
There's nothing like sitting outside and drawing the beauty of nature.
I enjoy drawing from reference photos, but prefer observing the details in nature in person as I sketch. I can react to the parts of the scene that really inspire me.
After an hour sitting on a rock on a chilly afternoon, I decided to snap a photo and finish the last details in my studio.
When I got back to my studio, I noticed my sketch needed more contrast.
Sometimes it's hard to discern the areas that are darker or brighter when you're looking at a color photo.
I converted my reference photo to black-and-white to make the values more obvious.
I added a bit more contrast between the water and the rocks around it.
I noticed I had made the waterfall too broad, so I narrowed it down a bit and added more bright values with a white Posca paint pen.
Here's the final page spread in my nature journal.
The beauty of drawing outdoors is that you get to be still and calm in nature, hearing the thundering of a waterfall or the music of songbirds as you create.
Time stills as you observe the beauty of nature around you.
When you're done, you have a sketch that will remind you of your experience every time you flip to that page.
I hope you find a quiet spot in nature where you can relax and sketch.
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